^Second the Logsdon. Recently had the opportunity to try their Bretta; Oak Bretta; Fresh Hop (along with most of their other releases). Bretta was my favorite, but have a bottle of Fresh Hop ready for a second go.

Logsdon and Fantome pretty much have me covered. I would love to try the Hill Farmstead saisons (and any hoppy beers they have). Upright is really good. There is a friend of mine (not a professional, yet) who makes saisons that will be mentioned in a thread like this in the future.

Beer Trader

Logsdon Seizoen Bretta is probably my fav at the moment. Boulevard Brett pretty damn good. Anything by Upright is damn good. Defining moment for me in craft beer was having a Dupont Foret at NOPA in San Fran a few yrs ago with a pork chop the size of my head. Meat and beer combo was mind blowing. End of story... Craft Beer For life! (and I love Saisons)

Beer Trader

Just so you know- the Weyerbacher is more of a spiced Belgian Strong Ale than a saison- with more sweetness, body and alcohol presense. Drink it on its own terms, don't expect something dry and a bit funky, and you should enjoy it (I've had quite a few myself over the past few months), but I don't think it belongs on any list of top saisons.

I have to admit, a few of those I haven't had, a few of those I have and do enjoy, and a few of those would be nowhere near my top 10 saisons list. Echoing TongoRad, Weyerbacher 17 just isn't a saison. It's a slightly farmhousey BSPA with weird adjuncts, and it was okay but not great in any way (my opinion). Athene had some really good moments but was way too heavy on the chamomile for me; Smuttynose is tasty, but a heavy bastard (admittedly, it's been a while and I need to revisit it); Great Divide Colette, to be honest, I found to be thoroughly mediocre in most respects.

I've had the normal Logsdon Seizoen, but it was not a great experience, there was some weird stratification going on in the bottle. The top of the glass was super-dry, and then the bottom was straight pear juice.

Beer Trader

Beer Trader

Also the quality and variety (usually at least 4 different saisons on draft every visit) of Tired Hands makes them a must try if you like the style.

Click to expand...

Tired Hands, Hill Farmstead, Logsdon, and Upright win the American battle, hands down. There are plenty of other American breweries making good saisons, but none are at the level of these four. (Jolly Pumpkin gets added to this list if you want to include their beers under the Saison/Farmhouse umbrella.) Boulevard Tank 7 is really nice as well, but I wouldn't put them in the elite level, particularly since Logsdon has come on the scene and blown Saison - Brett out of the water.

Outside of the "top" ones, McKenzie is way up there, though demoted slightly due to a lack of selection. There are plenty of other good to very good producers, but these are the best, IMO.

Outside of the U.S., Fantome and Dupont win for me. The two main saisons from each are amazing, though in very different ways.

There are very few good American Saisons out there. A bunch of Shaun Hill's saisons are awesome. I had an amazing Rye Saison from Oxbow in ME. It was 4% and quite the quaff. I did like the Love Buzz too. And Saison w/Brett.

Overall though I think most American Saisons are crap. Nothing is better than Saison Dupont and in particular Avec Les Bons Voeux. Thireze makes some great stuff too. I would say Fantome but I have had too many DISGUSTING bottles over the years to real get behind them. Fantome is basically a 60% 40% crapshoot. 60% chance of being awesome and 40% chance of being garbage. I am all for bottle variation but at 15-20$ for a 750 ML I am not playing that game anymore.

Beer Trader

Some highlights for me:
1. Any HF saison, they are that good. Had Civil Disobedience 4 last night and it blew me away for a black saison.
2. Only had the Fresh Hop Seizoen, but I echo bstyle that Logsdon seems to be making some really clean and delicious saisons right now. I'm definitely looking forward to Seizoen Bretta and Oak aged Bretta.
3. Boulevard Saison-Brett. A classic.
4. Not really a fan of the other things they do, but Jolly Pumpkin De Viento was a beautiful black saison.
5. Sofie. Don't care about the In-Bev crap that people will spew at me for it, this is a great beer.